What should I do if I miss a dose of Azurette?

What you should do if you miss a dose or more of the birth control pill Azurette (desogestrel/ethinyl estradiol and ethinyl estradiol) depends on how many pills you miss and when you miss them. Here are a few scenarios:

You missed one white (active) pill during week one, two or three. Take the missed pill as soon as you remember it and take the next pill at the regular time. This may mean you take two pills in one day.

You missed two white pills in a row during week one or two. Take two pills the day you remember, then take two pills the next day. Use a backup birth control method such as condoms or spermicide for seven days. Continue to take one pill a day until you finish the pack.

You missed two white pills in a row during week three. If you've been using a Sunday start date for your packs of Azurette, take one pill a day through Saturday. On Sunday throw out the pack and start a new one. For seven days after you realize your mistake, use a backup birth control method, such as condoms or spermicide. If you've been using a "Day 1" start date (meaning that you started your first pack of pills on the first day of your period), throw out the rest of the pack as soon as you realize your mistake and start a new one that same day. Use a backup birth control method for seven days.

You missed three white pills in a row during week one, two or three. If you've been using a Sunday start date for your packs of Azurette, take one pill a day through Saturday. On Sunday throw out the pack and start a new one. For seven days after you realize your mistake, use a backup birth control method, such as condoms or spermicide. If you've been using a "Day 1" start date (meaning that you started your first pack of pills on the first day of your period), throw out the rest of the pack as soon as you realize your mistake and start a new one that same day. Use a backup birth control method for seven days.

You missed one or more blue (low-dose estrogen) or green (inactive) pills during week four. Throw out the pills you missed and continue to take one pill a day.

If at any point you become confused about your pill schedule, reach out to your doctor or another healthcare professional. Until you hear from him or her, take one pill each day and use a backup method of birth control.